¡Así es Bolivia!

By the end of the next two bus rides, I would resolve with a sweet-and-sour decision.

Natalia and I arrived to the terminal about one hour early and the place was completely packed with people. We checked in at the office to see where we needed to go, the lady told us, and I had to leave my checked-backpack with her before going downstairs to the buses. What the...? I have never had to do this before and I was paranoid about not being able to see my bag go underneath.

Street Art in La Paz

There were buses everywhere they could fit but ours was there... so I thought. I walked up to the conductor, he looks at my ticket and tells me, "otro bus." Nooooo, this is my bus? It was in the stall / carril assigned to us. But as the time got near to board and depart, the marquee said they were leaving at 7:45 P.M. Ours was 8 P.M. Hmmmm...

Street Art in La Paz

Luckily, a local walked up to us and started explaining everything that was happening. There was another bus for us... the surplus of buses was due to the troubles caused by Potosí because no buses can go through there from the blockade. He explained to us why this was all happening.

Evo Morales, the President of Bolivia, has done a lot to improve the quality of life and infrastructure. However, like many governments (especially the U.S.A.... c'mon people), the officials are corrupt. They decided that every major city in Bolivia should be presented with gifts except for, oh, Potosí. The Potosinos, being very poor and lacking of infrastructure and quality jobs, all united in striking against the government. The government didn't care or notice what was happening for over 40 days. Then the blockade happened. Potosinos walked for several hours to reach the main road to arrive in Sucre. The president, officiating in Sucre, left for Uyuni to meet them for negotiations. The Potosinos basically told Morales to fuck off and meet them in Sucre to review a 26-item list of demands.

One of the biggest demands the Potosinos have is for a factory with jobs to refine the metals they dig up. First, the country has a population of almost 12 million people; one million of these people work in a mining-related position. Second, the silver that is extracted from the mines is sold unrefined to  other countries; then, Bolivia buys back the  refined silver at a marked-up cost. The Bolivians want to take out the middle person of the entire relationship. 

At 4700 meters, the start of the Yangus Road

There is more, definitely, to the story but this is the basic gist. I was so happy to finally understand why Potosí was giving me hemorrhoids. Our bus pulled up in carril 6, even though our ticket said carril 7... I knew this because I saw my bag being hoisted down, and thrown in the bottom of the bus. Before the bus ride, I made sure to purchase a heavy blanket for the ride in case (1) there were no blankets provided and (2) there was no heat on the bus. I found my seat, sat down, and waited for the departure. Behind me sat a young couple with an infant no older than 2 weeks old. It seemed fine so I was not anticipating a disruptive 8-hour bus ride. Again, I spoke too soon. The baby cried the entire eight hours of the ride... and there was nothing any of us could do so I kept my mouth shut. An indigenous woman asked every hour to the young couple, "no quiere leche?" and the mom kept saying "no." I could get no salvation from these bus rides!

We arrived in Cochabamba at 4 A.M. and surveyed the companies. All offices were closed until about 5:30 A.M. so I waited with all of our bags while Natalia scoped out which companies would be best to ride with. About 5 A.M. she was almost first in line for a company that looked inexpensive to ride... She signals over, asks me for money and my passport for the ticket, but around 6 A.M., while the office had been open for 30 minutes, there was no movement in the line. She signals me over again, tells me to wait her her spot while she checks out other companies. Apparently, the company couldn't find any of their drivers and they were frantically calling anyone who was available. For about 10 minutes, she was gone... and then the line started moving. I had no money, no passports, and I was freaking out about what I would do if I made it to the counter. I was next in line when she yells out that she got tickets from another company, we run out of the terminal to the bus, and hop on. The influx of people trying to travel and avoid Potosí became almost a fight for prime tickets.

The first lookout on my Death Road biking tour

Right before the Death Road Section

This bus was oversold in tickets. An old woman was sitting in the aisle. A family of four was sitting in the two seats immediately behind us. However, everything seemed fine... the bus departed at 6:30 A.M. and I fell asleep for a good two hours. When I woke up, I smelled something kind of funny but didn't think anything of it. But then there was a weird sound coming from behind. Natalia looked on the floor, noticed something by her feet, heard a sound and looked back... the little boy sitting right behind us was vomiting into his mom's hands and then she was dumping it on the floor of the bus. His vomit saturated everything that Natalia left on the floor! At this point, I am trying to prevent myself from vomiting. On top of it, I start hysterically laughing out loud due to the ridiculousness of all these bus rides! This was the point where I made my sweet-and-sour decision. No longer could I emotionally or physically deal with another bus ride. Not only did they really increase my stress level and break me down, I was also developing bruises and sores on my butt from sitting on so many buses for long periods of time-- three nights in Bolivia were spent exclusively on buses. I wouldn't go to Lake Titicaca on this trip. BUT I will end up visiting it when I want to travel through Peru.

Death Road

We got to La Paz after riding the bus for 8 hours, and Natalia started feeling sick... and getting sick. I assisted her to a hostel, then returned to the Adventure Brew Hostal. I spent the rest of my day relaxing, studying Spanish, and rewarding myself with a gigantic beer. I survived the buses and I wasn't going to ride anymore for a long time.

The following day, I didn't do much except book my Death Road biking tour. I wanted to accomplish at least two of the three things I set out to do. This involved walking around the tourist area, getting lost in the Miraflores barrio, and just relaxing at the hostel. I tried to get an early but full night of sleep before having to meet up with my tour group the next morning at 7 A.M. Call me old, but saving money by staying in a 20-bed dormitory is kind of torture. One person in my room was snoring so loud. Three people arrived in the middle of the night and decided 2 A.M would be a perfect time to turn on the lights and unpack all of their belongings in the lockers provided to us. On top of it, sounds of commotion were coming from outside the hostel. I didn't get much sleep at all and I was afraid how this was going to affect me with biking down the world's most dangerous road.

Death Road, with falls up to 800 meters (1/2 mile)

I got out of bed, prepared myself, and left for my tour. The first thing I noticed was the closer I approached San Francisco Plaza, the more trash I saw on the ground. I spotted piles of vomit. And then I go to the plaza. Eighty percent of the ground was covered in trash. People, still drunk from the night before, were stumbling around and some even fighting each other like sock'em bop'em robots. "Dear god," I thought, "get me out of here."

Postcard Cliff

The Death Road tour was amazing! I went through Gravity. The company is more expensive than others but it is worth it for the safety and care they give their riders. We descended over 4000 meters across 68 kilometers. One girl in the group, from Brazil, decided this was going to be where she learned how to ride a bicycle... my guide, Marcus, refused to let her put herself in danger and instructed she should ride in the bus. During the Death Road portion, where there is almost no protection from you falling off the side of a cliff from the dirt and gravel road, I ended up being one of the first riders in my group. Total adrenaline high. At the end, we visited the Bolivia Wildlife Sanctuary, ate dinner and showered, and returned to La Paz. It was my final night in Bolivia and I couldn't be more excited to return to Ecuador.

A capybara at the sanctuary.

My return to Quito included two layovers-- one in Lima, and the other in Bogotá. The second layover was for six-hours and I decided to leave the airport during that time to explore Colombia for the first time, eat some food, and purchase some souvenirs. I was dropped off in taxi at Plaza de Bolivar and explored that area for a little while before getting back to the airport in a VERY stressful taxi ride. The population is 8 million in the city-proper, and I could tell! Sooooooooo many people everywhere walking, driving. It took me 30 minutes to hail down a cab and I was concerned I made a mistake. "I should have stayed at the airport," I kept telling myself. But I got back to the airport an hour before boarding time... and that is alright with me.

Plaza de Bolivar, Bogotá

Overall, this was a very stressful trip but I wouldn't change a thing. I was scared at first of going to an unfamiliar country alone, but I ended up meeting a lot of new and interesting people from across the world. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and tried new things and realized dreams of mine. I felt a lot more comfortable with traveling by myself compared to six months ago, when I went alone to the Ecuadorian coast for nine days. This is what I want to do with my life... live and work abroad, and continue to experience other countries. Bolivia left me stressed out but also fulfilled with life. In addition, I also learned a lot about myself. I filled 45 pages front-and-back in my notebook with reflections, stories and experiences, and details about other places I want to travel. I improved my Spanish quite a bit too as I filled an additional 20 pages front-and-back with practice of verbs.

I honestly cannot wait to go back and travel. I know it seems like I just had a horrible time because all these posts focus on the crazy bus rides.Bolivia is such a beautiful country, and now I understand more of how to get around. These bus rides, though, are going to be some of my funniest memories for my life.

Lastly, the biggest lesson I learned is:

You don't choose what you do in Bolivia; Bolivia chooses for you.